Withings Activite

The Most Beautiful Watch You'll See Today Is Actually An Activity Tracker. Wait, What?

The market is flooded with wearable fitness watches in all shapes and sizes, as long as your definition of shape and size is “thick digital manhole cover” or “thin girly bracelet.” Manufacturers have been quite successful at jamming valuable fitness features into wristwatches, but far less successful at developing accessories that look more stylish outside the gym than nylon short shorts. The new Withings ActiviteÌ is one of the rare success stories.

Withings steps outside of the usual fitness-monitor formula of “function first, fashion… fashion?” The ActiviteÌ is every bit as much a fashion-forward timepiece as it is a functional gym partner. In place of the black, all-digital construction that really isn’t socially acceptable in public past grammar school, the ActiviteÌ combines a stainless steel body, analog face, sapphire glass and leather strap. The watch was designed in Paris and made in Switzerland, for a true combination of high fashion and precise movement.

Not only is the ActiviteÌ sleeker than the average fitness watch, it’s more streamlined than the average timepiece. Look closely and you’ll notice the lack of buttons and dials around its body. The watch operates using simple taps on the glass, providing a super-easy, clean interface. Because it’s powered for up to one year by standard disposable watch batteries, there’s no need for a charging port.

Underneath the ActiviteÌ’s svelte, classic face, a set of digital guts brings the watch into the 21st century with a full suite of fitness-tracking capabilities. The sensor set tracks daily activities like walking, running, swimming, and sleep patterns. Calculated data includes number of steps, distance covered, calories burned, and length of deep and light sleep. The smaller dial displays your progress toward the current goal, and a vibrating alarm clock is available as a gentle wake-up option. The ActiviteÌ automatically switches between sleep and active modes, so there’s no forgetting to activate it for the day. It includes Bluetooth Low Energy for connecting with iOS devices and works with the Withings Health Mate app for setting goals and analyzing data. It can be used in the water and carries a 5-ATM water resistance rating.

While we’d say Withings is successful in creating a fashionable fitness monitor, a feat that seemed impossible not long ago, the ActiviteÌ proves there are compromises in every multipurpose design. The metal-and-leather construction looks plenty comfortable for a business meeting, but not ideal for a hot, sweaty gym session or midnight toss-and-turn. Withings gets partially around this by including a plastic sport strap for active and underwater use, but we’re still not sure the ActiviteÌ will be the most comfortable watch to play and sleep in.

Still, the ActiviteÌ is scheduled to retail for $390 when it hits the market this fall. That means just a few more months of shamefully hiding your sweaty, rubber-and-plastic fitness band in your gym bag the second you hit the lockers.